Press for horizontal vulcanizers.



5. E, GAMMETEH. PRESS FUR Hammam VULCAMZERS.

MPLICHQN fiLEO OCT. 5. 19W.

Iiatented Jan. 2, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

SYS N j. H. GAMMEIEH.

Patented Jun. 2, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

.2( R. GAMMETE.

PRESS ma HORIZGNML VULLANIZERSE APPLICATION FILED DCT. 5 lg.

Patented Jan. 2, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

ATTORNEY UNITED srsfrns rsfr im" oFFIcE,

IOHN B. GAMMETER, OF AKRON, HIO, ASSIGNOR' TO THE B. I". GOODRICH CCMPAN'Y, 0F NEW YORK, N. Y., A. CORPORATION OE NEW YORK.

PRESS FOI-l HRIZONTAL VULGANIZERS.

Win-m Spccication of Luiers Patent,

Patented Jan. 2, 1917.`

Application filou'. October 5, 1916. Serial No. 123,982.-

Akron, in thc county of Summit and tlnzte of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Presses for Horizontal Vulcamzms, of which the following is a speeilicution.

This invention relates principally to un apparatus for rulcanizing molded rubber' articles such as pneumatic tires in horizontal vulcanizing chambers to which steam is inlmitled to surround and lient the molds.

Hcrctofore it has been the practico in usin vulcanizers of this typo to einnloy mol( s, the halves of which :ire secured togcther by bolts, whe-rens in vcr-tical pot \nlcnnizcrs it is customary to use a hydraulic press acting on a stack of boltl-ss molds and thus, among other savings, to client :s cnw siderablc reduction of time and labor in opening und closing the molds. :2,2: hcrcto. fore constructed however, the inulosed rerticnlrvulcanizing presses have been olnjec tionnble on account of their height und coinparntive lack of accessibility to the opcrating parts. .g

The objcct'of my present invention to proride a novel forni of press, particularly, adopted for use in horizontal vulcnniz'i's,

A thus pormittinnr the employment. of holtlcss molds and quie 'er charging and discharging methods for this type of vulcauizcr.

A further object ls to-prm'idc such o` press with novel fluid piping to thc individu-.1l nmlds. thereby permit-ting, for example, the

use of 4intcrunl or outwardly-acting lluid pressure in the molding of the tiros.

()f the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 rcprcsents n plan View, artly broken nu ny, showing n horizontal .vu canizer and a tram of prcsscnrs on the ol..sidc thereof, :lll or-A gnuizcd according to `my invention. Fig: l represents a side elevation of the same with the Hoor in section. Fig. 3 represents n horizontal section of the vulcnnizcr nud n. portion of the train showing one of the cnrs with its upper press member removed, oxposing the top of n stack of molds. Fig. t represents nn end view of the yiilcanizcr showing a press cnr therein, purly 1n ser tion on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3, to other with a stack of tire molds, one of whic i is shown in full lines and the others in broken lines.

lu thc dr.iw ings, 10 is n cylindrical horizontal rnlcainzer body of ordinary typo, u dn horizontal swinging door lllunged at l. railway, is luid in the bottoni of the' rulcnuizer and oxtonds outside of und in liuc.

'ilu-rewirh n considerable distance along the Iloor l-l. ol thc. rulcnnizing room to permit the loading nucl unloading of the press cnrs. A section Ll of thisl truck immediately in front of the i ulennixcr is mudo removable L, permit the wringing of the vulcnniller door 1l. l5, 1:3 are n serios of press cars connezirrl ingerir-zr in n train und adapted to he hnulcd into :ind out of thc vulennlzcr. The hauling! is done hy moans of n rod 16 shown in Fig. J which is connected with the foremost cnr of the trnin and hoolicd onto npropellurg chain 17 which posses around n puir of pulleys lr?, lll. The shaft 20ct' pulley 1S is counecicll by suitable gearing 2l to an electric motor .l, which is prcl'crahly rcrersillle .i1-o as to more lthe train in either direci'iou without requiring: the rod 16 to be shilg'tcd from our. stretch of the chuin to the other.

l'lzu-Ii um' includes :i platform 23 mounted on four iinurfed wheels A which run on the mils 13, und the :cnrs are coupled together lig! providing their adjacent ends Vesper.`

tively with n. pair of arms 9.5 'located relatively i'nr apart and open or slotted on thcir under sides so as to hook over the ends of one. of the heel axles 26, outside of thc wheels 94, and n second pair of arms 27 lo cnt-cd rulntimly noar'togcthcr :1nd similarly open or slotted underneath so ns to hook over .said axle. between the wheels, thero hc-4 iiu: thus lar-tween cach pnir of cnrs 15 nn axle QG and a pair of wheels 24. common to thc two cnrs. This arrangement reduces the number ol wlmels and axles required, pcr mits them to he. readily removed from the cnrs, und dispenses with separate couplings between the cnrs, since the axles and arms not ns couplings. t

Figs. 3 und 4 show in detail the construction of the press cnrs. The upper Sido of the plut-form 23 forms thc lower press inem- -hor for the stach of tiro molds 28, and thc undcrhody of said platform is formed with o downwardly-open shallow cylinder 29 0f relatively large diameter. In this cylinder is located a piston 30`hci1ing a suitable pack- .`l. pair ol' rails lll, forming n track or ing 31 on its edge, and rlso haring :i central rod or stern 32 which passes through n tuA huhu` guide 33 und n stutling-box -l en the platform 23. 1

The top press pluto is the houd or cup 35 of n mushroom-shaped member prm'ided with a stem which connects with the upper end of the piston rod 3;! hy u screw `ioint 37. so that snid member muy lie uncoupled :und lifted out of the wey when tire molds nre to lhe lended upon or unloaded from the press enr. The heu( is provided with rt puir of suspension loops 3S for connecting it with the hooi; of n hoisting ehnin. Said head :ind its stem 3U ure runde hollow :ind perforntc, that is` with nu open-topped central curity 39 und Intersil openings 4t), 4l. permitting access of steunt to thiinterior of the nlold Strich'.

It will be noted thnt the dounwnrd acting cylinder und piston in the liner ol' the press, together with :i detnrzhzihlt mush room top member whose stein traverses the interior of the mold stach, prorifle :i ier" compnet structure yQuited to the reeilrictefl vertice! dimensions of the ordinary horizonv tail tire-ulcnnizing chuuillcr; the piston necessarily hnring :l short Stroke in order to :ifford maximum vertical strich ciipncity. lf the batch of tires to be vulcanized on a cnr is 1e s in number than n complete stuck of molds, dummies or empty molds muy he used to lill up.

42 is :i fluid pnnge for churginff und exhausting the cylinder' 99, the. Sait prissnge connecting by u. curved pipe 4I) under the Cllr platform with n trunk pipe -ll which runs longitudinally of the trziin :xlonpr one side thereof, :ind is formed in sections ab tuchcd to the Severn! curs und connected b couplings 45 between the cnrs. 0n the liner of the vulennizer 10 is :i suppl)T pipe 4G, prefrinblr sinuous :is shown in order lo mnhe it, flexible :ind :illow `ome rnrinliou in the position of the outer end coupling. Suid pipe hais n w10p-.':il\'e l? :il ils front end. nenr the ent-rune@ to the ruit-uninet'. und :l union couplingl -lS for dtwnehithly connecting it. with the train pipe ll. The hitter hns :i shut-ell valve -lfl fm' lhil principzil purpose of ir-tniningr the prvnsure in the pres.,-I cylinders nfter the 'lutter hure heen charged outside ol: the rulcunizur hy ini-nm of n pipe shown in Fig: 1. This pipe. is: provided with u :sluit-olil rali-c fill und con nests with the train pipe M through onl brunch 0f n stationary T-seelion of pipe. 5U", to the opposite brniieh nl' which `is con nected n vacuum pipe fill prorided with z'. shut-off valve 50". 130 is n. rnlred wnsle brunch lending from the pipe section 50h.

The tiro molds 2S nreot the ordinary type. used in vertical vulcnnizing presses, being: mnt' two hnlrcs without bolts, :ind ndupted i s closed tightly upon the tire casing by means of .-ixial premura exerted by the press. These molds muy he used with cores either ol' the ordinary type or of the internal |uid|nes ure type, the lutter being purticuiurly udupted to the curing of cord tires. Fig. l, for exluuple, represents :in endless inctnl liller or core ring 51 for location between the halves of the mold and the beads of the tire easing 52, to mold and puck the lnller, :ind :i llexiblei\':illed unnuhu` bag or nuindrel 5H loculed within thc interior of thel tire cursing und provided with n iii-:inch supplr :ind exluiust pipe 54, The lutter is :uhipled lo he connu-ted hy u iulion lult 55 with on(` el' .fi series of copper pipes 5G, lend' iupY l'roin :i nniuifold 5T on the enr platform :15. the several pipe; 5G terminating nl; diiferent heights for the purpose of connecting with the indhiduul molds of the stuck. .7* in il brunch Suppl)` pipe connecting with :he manifold .3? nud continued in the i'orm nl' n curved pipe 5l* which extends under the enr platform. Pipe .'l connects with u trunk liniu pipe 0U similar to the pipe 4d, furnished with couplings (il betweenthecnrs. lipe In) connects hy :L .sepiiruble union 62 with n sinuous pipe 63, similar to the one 4G. lying on the bottoni of the vulcnnizcr and having :i hund-vulve S at its front end.

In the operation of my invention, assuming that the trnin of press cnrs is withdrawn from the rnlfrzmizer, and the upper press lneinher 35 on euch car is removed for the purpose of lending the tire molds on the curs. maid molde nrc stacked one :it a time .on the platform 23 of n.car, und as euch mold is pnt in pince, itsv Internal-pressure pipe il is eonnectwl withone of the copper pil ce liti h v ineens nl* the coupling 55. When the .stuck t-nnpir-ie the upper press memlier 235 is lowered into place and its Stem by i uieuzn. of the triupiing 3T, is screwed onto the piston red 3Q. Owing to the short stroke nl the piston :ind the inet that-the mold hnlvex require mnsideruble preSHure in order 1p.

lo glimtheni on the tires. the coupling of the upper preV member upon thc pistonrod, und the closing uf the press, are prefernhly perform-.d in stages. All of the press um lwinoloin-lei] :ind their upper pressing.

rwnhezf-r Ilf sri-owed down :.S for :is possible will :l lnnnthnr. v. connection is made heyii-wn tin Imn pipe tzt :ind the stutionnry h ulrnulir pip .'i'tl. :lud waiter pressure is .nimitlrd ln the .liever-.il cylinders 29, there 12a in' herring down the pistons 30 and cnusin n downward :mini pressure to beexerte upmi the stnvl: of molds by means of the press member whereby the two halves of` euch mold nre pressed together or toward euch other. Then the supply from pipe 50 if, hut ell'. the press cylinders relieved throughthe waste pipe 50, the press memhers :l5 screwedfm'ther down. by hand bars,

and the pressure again applied. Generally and when the molds are fully closed the l1 .held in the cylinders by shutting the valv'e 49. The train pipe 44 may then be uncoupled from the external pressure line and the trein 1G run into thevulcum'zer yl0 by menus of the rod lll by the electric u'iotor whereuponthe truin pipes fl-l und C0 ure connected with the supply pipes 46 und 63 in the vulcunizer and pressure turned on to operate the resses und inflate the tires. The truck section 13 being then removed, the rulcnnizcr door l1 is closed and locked, und stcnm is turned ou to the interior of the vulcnnizer from r1 suitable source of supply (not shown) to cure the tires. After vu cunization is complete, thc steam is turned oli', the door 1l opened, the. pipes 'lfi oud 68 disconnected, the truck section 1TB replaced, and the train of iress curs run out of the vulcauizer. The upper press members are then retracted, either by applying n vacuum to the several cylinders 25.3, through the train pipe 44 und the rocuum pipe 50", so that thc pistons 30 are raised by :atmospheric pressure acting on their lower sides, or by mechanical means not shown in the drawings, adapted to push upwardly upon the exposed lower faces of the pistons. Thereupon the top press member 85, on being unscrewed from the piston rod, may be lifted out of place with suitnblc chain taci-le., the ipes 56 uncoupled ,from the molds oney-one, and the molde lifted oil und pried open.

:im aware that horizontal vulcunizers here been equipped with n battery of hy- .'lr-lulic presses 'permanently associated with the vulcnnizcr and operating throufvh the door thereof upon :t our of loup; molds such us: isser! 'for er .11i carriage tires. but I believe myself to be the first to utilice the ordi- "ery horhnoriml opcnrstcam vulcanizing chamber in connection with o port-able press i'or pneumatic tire molds. It is evident that the details ol' embodiment of the invention herein described and claimed may be widely varied. it is also evident that the novel tentures of my rulcuuiziug' press muy be utilized wherever applicable, regardless of the pnrticuinr mode in which the heating medium is applied to the'molcls.

l. .it verily-.el mrlccnizing press comprising n heee or plrtrorm for supporting n stach of molds, nu upper press-meniber movsible toward Suid buse tp. clamp the molds thereon, und u cylinder nrs ciatorl with said bai-c und haring a downirurdlyfhcting piston detnchnbly connected with said upper press member.

il. A verticalrulcunizing press comprising o base or platform constituting a lower support for a stack of molds nud having ns- F-eiuted therewith und chain 17 operated e. downwardly-acting' Huid-pressure cylinder and iston, said piston having u stem passing triu'ough a guide on the buse, and nn upcr press member having n. stem detachnb y connected with said piston stem.

3. A vertical rulcunizin press comprising u base irovided with n fewer press memher und n downwardly-open cylinder having mennsifor ndmittiug und chschnrging the working fluid, n piston in Suid cylinder cxposcdto atmospheric pressure on its lower side, und an upper press member connected with said piston.

l. Vulcaniziug -nppnrutus comprising u horizontal open-heut vulcunizing chamber, und :i car adapted to be run into und out oi' Suid chamber und provided with n press for noting on :t stuck of molds curried by the cnr.

5. Vulennizing `apparatus comprising u horizontal vulcuniziug chamber n our movable into and out of seid chamber and cnrrying n {luid-operated mold press, and n fluid-supply conduit havin n. separable couplin for attachin it to tie press when locnte within Suid c amber.

horizontal vulcunizing chamber, n series of curs provided with fluid-operated mold presses und cou pled together in a. train which 1s movable into and out of said chamber, and moons to supply fluid under pressure to the presses of the'cars within said chamber.

7. Vulcanizing apparatus comprising a vulcnnizing chamber, s, fluid-operated mold press movable into und out of snid chamber, means to supply working fluid to operate Suid press when located within said cimmber, and menus to supply working fluid to operate said press when located outside of said chamber.

8. Vulcnnizing apparatus comiprising a horizontal vulcanizng chamber, a car mov- :iblc into and out of said chamber and provided with n fluid-operuted mold press, u fluid-supply conduit having :t detachable coupling within said chamber for operating said )rees during vulcauizution, und :1i-second uid conduit having a detachable coupling external to said chamber for operating said press When the our is ou,l` of the chamber.

9. Vnlcnnizing apparatus compi-:sing a rulennizin chamber, a Huid-operated mold press morn ile into and flut of scid chamber, means for supplying fluid under pressure to said press while in the chamber, und means for applying pressure to said press to ,open the latter when located outside of sind chamber. l

l0. Vulennizing apparatus comprlsln a horizontal vulcanizin chamber, a loading lloor in front of seid c amber, n wheeled car movable into und out of scid chamber and over said floor, a Huid-operated mold press (i. Vulcanizing apparatus comprising a carried by Seid ear, and :i {iuillsupply pipe mlupteil lo be coupled to the prees when le enlml 'm said chamber.

11. Vnleunizing apparatus comprising n buse lor supporting u suie-li of mmol-(1 i' molde, u piston und cylinder nssoculwl with said buffe, :L movable press member 'for enguging (be upper end of the mold stuck, sind :i connection between said piston und press member wlapted to traverse the hollow iiiterior of the mold Steek.

1'2. Vulezmizing apparatus emnprising :i base for `supporting u steel( el :mmilur molds, u Cylinder and piston associated with said base, a series of pipes moimml im the base and having separable coupling-e 'for connection with the individual molfl. mul

un upper press member min'meled with tbe plslion :unl removable lo permit leerling :lu-il unloading olf the molrlf; :xml :illim :mi-1mi, lo swirl couplings.

l. VulezuilI/iiilgg :Lppnlulm umnprluy v ezuxiibinnlion, :i liasse buying :i uylin-lyr mul piston useociaitod therewith, n. lixnli nl imnoA lnr molde supporleli mi Suid. bien; mi upper prees member having :i Stem Lrnwi'mng the interior of the mold. staf-li nml selen-ably (furiiieelml willi the piston, mrl melma williil. the luier-im' el', the mold .etnuli 'for eiipplyiiig; lliiil umlei pressure lo tbe reniwnelive mblllfi 

